Tuesday, July 23, 2024
The Gatesville City Council reviewed budget goals for the 2025 fiscal year during its July 9 meeting.
Interim City Manager Brad Hunt and Interim Deputy City Manager Mike Halsema presented a list of eight priority items as well as an overview of major needs and projects for the upcoming year. One of the top considerations included wage increases for city employees.
Hunt said they are proposing a minimum 5% cost of living adjustment for paid positions, with the possibility of a 7% increase for supervisor levels.
“A lot of this budget has to do with adequately compensating employees and getting them closer to what the market pay rates are for their positions,” Hunt said. “We really want to retain the good talent that we have and be able to attract and recruit new talent across the entire city.”
Some departments already received wage adjustments this fiscal year, such as the Gatesville Police Department and various positions at City Hall.
Hunt said they reviewed and compared the average salaries in surrounding cities, such as Copperas Cove and Clifton, to determine the pay adjustments.
“We know it’s not a classification and compensation study. It is more like calling around to the places that someone living here might want to drive to and go work (at) if I don’t pay them enough to want to stay,” Hunt said.
However, Hunt and Halsema suggested the possibility of funding a classification and compensation study for certain positions this upcoming fiscal year. The study examines the responsibilities of each position to ensure its classification aligns with its pay.
“Everyone likes the compensation side, but the classification is really the key, because that’s what allows you to stand behind any compensation,” Halsema said.
The presentation also led to a lengthy discussion between staff and the council about possible funding to repair deteriorated city streets. While there are several Capital Improvement Projects that will take priority within the budget – like those involving water production– several council members emphasized the importance of addressing the issue.
“There are streets that are in terrible repair. Saunders, I think, is one that comes to mind,” Councilmember Barbara Burrow said. “There’s really no plan on how to navigate that if the infrastructure underneath is to be replaced, if and when that happens.”
“I also drive on a street that is not anywhere close to good, but anytime I drive over it I think, where are we going to find the money in the budget to fix all of these?” Councilmember Joe Patterson said.
Hunt agrees that there needs to be a more proactive assessment and repair program in place for city streets.
“I agree that driving around town we need to be assessing on a regular basis more than just complaint and responding, but being proactive to knowing that this block is really bad, and we need to get down here and actually replace either the worst section or the whole block if we have to,” Hunt said.
The Street Department, which recently changed its name to Street Maintenance, plans to shift its focus from building or rebuilding streets to prioritizing maintenance and repairs, such as addressing drainage issues. Chad Newman, who is now the Public Works Director over both Street Maintenance and Water Distribution departments, explains that the department does not currently have the employees or resources to completely rebuild streets, but they can provide temporary repairs to make them passable.
“I think we have to start being proactive and start looking at how to fix them now to get us by until we can afford or do a complete street like we’ve been doing in the past,” Newman said.
Hunt and Newman suggested that the department should continue to hire out contractors for paving work to save on the city’s resources, such as with the recent construction on Lovers Lane.
“That’s a model that I would guide us to change – is you should not generally try to be building an entire block of the street,” Hunt said. “It’s repair streets and make them much more passable than current, address drainage, and immediate concerns and patches and holes.”
Mayor Gary Chumley adds that roads that received recent damage from flooding might also be eligible for FEMA funding.
“Hopefully, we get money from that to refurbish or redo these streets,” Chumley said.
Other priority items for the budget included maximizing grant funding to improve city infrastructure and community resources. This includes planning for a new police station, repairing flood damage at Faunt Le Roy Park, and investigating grant opportunities for fuel tank replacements or improvements at the Gatesville Municipal Airport.
The report also presented a summary of current water and sewer capital projects, including improvements at the city’s Stillhouse Wastewater Treatment Plant and sewer line improvements on Highway 36.
With the introduction of Fiber internet and lower real estate costs compared to neighboring counties, Hunt adds that the city should also plan for growth opportunities in the next several years.
“I think we’ll see a lot of growth. We’re definitely going to want to be on top of managing that in the following years and have more of a structure that we follow and what goes where and why,” he said.
Other proposed budget goals for the fiscal year 2025 include:
The city’s current budget totals $33,949,363 for the 2023-24 fiscal year, which was adopted in September of last year. The city council will vote on the final draft of the budget for the 2024-25 fiscal year at a future council meeting.
